Is Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda worth the price?


Over 900 critically endangered mountain gorillas are in the world, inhabiting the border area of the three countries; Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic republic of Congo. It is believed that during the time of Dian Fossey, mountain gorillas were 300 but now the number is increasing, out of the three countries that host mountain gorillas, meeting the gorillas in Rwanda is expensive and it only hosts 300 gorillas in volcanoes national park.

Every traveler who wishes to trek Mountain gorillas in Rwanda has to be with a gorilla permit but is the money that is paid for gorilla permits in Rwanda worth it? We believe it is a yes because the money that’s is collected from selling gorillas permits, is used in various activities including the protection and conservation of the endangered mountain gorillas and this has seen a steady increase in the population of mountain gorillas at a rate of 3.7% per year.

The local communities that are surrounding volcanoes national park benefit directly from the permit fees since they receive a portion of it. Therefore the gorilla permit fees in Rwanda is used as an investment in the survival and protection of mountain gorillas and also to aid the surrounding communities including the original people of the forest, the Batwa pygmy community.

Rwanda is also using the funds from gorilla permits for marketing itself as an upmarket primate destination. And this has helped gorilla trekking in Rwanda to be a magical experience that everyone should get a chance to experience for a safari adventure. Therefore gorilla trekking in Rwanda is worth the price.

Hiking the gorilla trekking price in Rwanda was a way of controlling mass tourism due to over increase in demand for Rwanda’s gorilla tours. The peace and stability of Rwanda led to a rise in the number of tourists coming into the country for this life changing experience. 

Rwanda’s host of the endangered mountain gorillas is volcanoes national park and gorilla trekking begins as early as 7:30 am with a brief orientation at the parks headquarters while having your gorilla permit. A group of eight is guided up the volcanoes national park with the assistance of a tracker, guide and hired porters for individual trekkers. During the trekking period, the travelers enjoy the fields of crops and phenomenal views of mountains. The hike can take time ranging from 30 minutes to several hours depending on where the gorilla spent the night the previous day. Mountain gorillas don’t stay in one place, they keep on moving looking for food.

And once the mountain gorillas are spotted, travelers are allowed to spend with them only an hour. Though is seems short for the travelers who travel miles to Rwanda to view the gorillas, the moment is very exciting and unforgettable.

The mountain gorilla’s characteristics are similar to those of humans, yet they are wild animals. For example, the female gorilla most times pumper their younger ones while the others keep playing and rolling around the bushes as the silverbacks break leaves putting in their mouth chewing loudly. Another character is the way they sleep, look and scratch their body parts is human like and you observing them doing this makes you believe that truly the mountain gorillas are very close to human beings. And that’s what trekkers feel whenever they get close to the mountain gorillas in Rwanda, hence explaining why each year more travelers flock to Rwanda and head to the jungle to also have the gorilla trekking experience.

Basing on the reasons above, Gorilla trekking in Rwanda is worth the price. And gorilla trekking in Rwanda is the most fantastic experience to every adventure travelers.